Sunshine and Rain

Our weather has been amazing!  The temps are in the 50's and 60's which is actually super comfortable (we don't have humidity here).  We have a lot of sunny days, and some rainy days.  No matter what the weather, Joey and I are getting outside everyday for at least 60 minutes.  Green Hour Power!

Joey loves sticks, rocks, and dirt.  He's still in the "put everything in my mouth" stage, so you really have to watch him...especially around rocks.  I must tell you, it is so freaking nice to be able to go outside without bundling us both up in 20 something layers.  It feels so odd to only have to put socks and shoes on the kid.  Nice, but odd.   

One of our friends had given Joey a talking puppy dog for his birthday, but Joey already had this dog.  So, we returned the gift and let Joey pick something out.  He picked out this popping lawnmower.  He LOVES it.  He has already cut all of our grass and inside carpet!  This lawnmower is pretty sweet.  It comes with a little red gas can, makes lots of noise, and can be pushed all around.  What more could a Joey ask for?!?!  

I'm really glad Joey learned to walk during this season.  I think it would have really been hard to deal with a "just learning to walk" child and the snow and ice.  Joey likes to go outside so much.  We let him walk himself out the door, with our supervision, of course.  When he gets close to the step, he reaches up for my hand and holds it as he tries to step down.  It is the cutest thing ever! 

We are still going on our weekly hikes, which have actually become bi-weekly!  Gotta step up mama's training!  Sorry, I don't have any photos from these past few week's hikes.  My hiking camera is dead and I have lost the charger.  We are going to get a new charger TODAY!  We did go on a hike down in Girdwood (a little ski town 45 minutes south of Anchorage) yesterday.  Unfortunately, the weather was super gloomy and wet!  But we didn't let that stop us!  I bundled Joey up in his fleece bunting suit and then his rain suit!  How freaking cute is he!!?!?

Then, he went into the framed backpack carrier which has a rain canopy.  These kids have it made!  I just wore a rain jacket.  We were hiking through a rain forest so the rain made our adventure that much more authentic!  All of us that made the hike made a joke about how we are some serious hardcore Alaskan hiking mamas!  Hear us roar!!! 

Party Time

Last weekend, on Joey's actual day of birth, we held a huge party to celebrate that we ALL made it through the first year!  This has been a crazy year, full of rough patches and even more great spots!  :)  We all deserved this party to celebrate Joey's first birthday and our first year as parents anniversary!   

We didn't really do any decorations, except for the photos showing Joey at each month of his life.  The above photo shows newborn, one, and two months. 

Three, four, and five months.

Six, seven, and eight months.

Nine, ten, and eleven months.

Then, for the twelfth month, we placed that photo within a mat that all the party-goers signed!  

 Joey had already smashed two cakes while we were in NC, but Michael had not been able to be part of those.  So, we did another one!  We just gave Joey a white cake with whip cream! 

He really didn't know what to do when he first got the cake... 

 but once we gave him a spoon, he went to town!  Joey is one year old...he's sophisticated now!

Joey also wanted to share his cake with Daddy who was very willing to help his son out!

Michael and I kept going back and forth about what to get Joey for his special day.  We decided to give him this pee-pee stool that I have been working on since before he was born!   

And we also gave him this amazing puzzle!  One of my stay-at-home dad friends makes these puzzles.  He does several different designs that are all something you can find in Alaska (except dinosaurs).  He also makes these puzzles out of Birch, which is a super abundant tree in our state.  Joey won't be able to play with this until he's a few years older, but we wanted to get him something that would always remind him of Alaska.  If you'd like to learn more about these puzzles, go here!

Joey was also SUPER spoiled by all of our friends and family!  Even after his party, he received a few gifts from family!  Everyone was so generous and we are so blessed and honored to know all of you!   Thank you to everyone that came to our party or who sent their birthday wishes from afar!  We truly are grateful!

After Joey went to bed and all of the kiddos went home, the adult party began.  It was just a small group of us that hung out, chit chatted and had a few drinks.  In the above photo, Michael is playing "Rock, Paper, Scissors" with our friend, Liz.  They are trying to determine who has to take the next shot.  :)  I also need to mention that our pre-baby friends are incredible.  Not only did they get Joey gifts, but they got me and Michael gifts!  How cool is that?!?!  It was all alcohol or gift cards to get alcohol!  Ha ha!  They know what kind of year it sometimes was.  The party really was great and very memorable.  Thank you to all of you!  You truly have made Joey's first birthday and our first parent anniversary amazing!

Shaggy

Joey's hair had gotten quite long and shaggy!  So, Michael and I decided to get Joey's first hair cut on his first birthday! 

The "before" photo!

Our friend, Shannon (Tyler's mom), did the honors of trimming our baby's 'do!   

Getting ready for the big snip!

 Shannon did amazing with Joey.  She placed a cloak on each of us.  Then, she squirted Joey's hands with water and then his hair.  She let him play with combs and clips while she trimmed away!  Michael wanted Joey to have a buzz cut, but Shannon and I decided that Joey's hair should only have a trim...he's got the rest of his life to have a buzz cut!  :)

The "after" picture.

Joey did so good during the hair cut!  The trim made him look so good!  Much better than the shaggy hair he had been sporting!   

Shannon and Joey!

Shannon even gave us a certificate with some of Joey's first hair clippings!  :)  It was a really good experience and I hope future hair cuts are that painless!

The Big One

I know that I am a little late posting this, but it has been a crazy week!  Without further ado...

It has finally happened.  Our little man has turned one year old!  I cannot believe that it has finally happened.  It really does seem like yesterday when we were bringing him home!  Heck, it seems like yesterday when we found out we were pregnant!  Everyone tells you to enjoy every moment because time goes by way too fast.  That is the dang truth!   I have so much to say about Joey turning one, so I'm actually going to break this up into a few separate posts.  For this post, I want to brag about what Joey can do now that he is one!  :) 

Us after our race!  Notice Joey screaming in the stroller?  He was D.O.N.E.!

 He is so mobile it is ridiculous.  He can walk like nobodies business and is trying to pick up some speed and start to run!  He still does not like to be in his stroller or even be in his carrier as much anymore.  I blame this on his new found walking freedom.  Why be carried or pushed when you can do it yourself?  Michael, Joey, and I all participated in our first family 5K race a couple of weeks back.  Michael pushed Joey so I could try to get a good run in.  That was a good thought in theory, but there were so many people and strollers in our wave, that we actually had to do a lot of walking due to the lack of passing space! 

He loves Spaghetti! 

He really does like to eat everything, especially if you are eating it!  He may have the same thing on his plate, but he wants what is on your plate!  He's also very demanding when he is hungry.  He will cry and loudly fuss until you give him his food.  He's actually very obnoxious.  We have cut back on our already seldom restaurant trips partly due to this new publicity stunt.  Joey is also into EVERYTHING, so eating at a restaurant is actually really stressful and not enjoyable at all.  Michael asked me where I wanted to eat for Mother's Day and I told him "at home".  The restaurant idea is nice, but when you actually sit down and think about what all eating at a restaurant with a baby/toddler entails...the idea isn't that great anymore.  It's almost like torture. 

Actually, I love everything that is messy!

 Joey also likes to feed himself.  He's even really gotten into using the spoon.  As you can see in the photo above, he's not that great at it, but he still likes it.  Hence another reason, the restaurant trips have been drastically decreased.  We are still giving Joey formula because we have not had his 12-month checkup yet.  I know, I know, we don't need a doctor to tell us that it's okay to switch to whole milk or eat any of the high allergenic foods, but we have decided that we do want to wait until we talk to the doctor.  We also suspect that Joey may be lactose intolerant.  He has been having constant diarrhea, even after the little bug he had after our NC trip.  We finally started to notice that he had the diarrhea every time after he had a bottle of the milk-based formula.  Once we switched to the soy formula, solid poop.  Joey also really hasn't been eating any cheese or yogurt.  We're not sure if he really has an intolerance to lactose, but it just seems very odd that the diarrhea goes away when he's off dairy.  Another reason we want to wait for the doctor's appointment before we make the milk switch.   We are also slowly starting to wean Joey from the bottle.  This household is going to be sippy cup central!   

Joey and his little friend, Phoebe, hanging out after our hike at the Nature Center. 

Joey has gotten much better with other babies.  He hasn't bitten, or tried to bite, any other kids in months!  Yes!!  He LOVES older kids, especially little boys.  He is also quite the social butterfly.  We went to a large play date last week, and as soon as he put him down, he was gone!  Exploring and playing with all of the other kids!   

He loves the dogs and cat so much!  There has actually been much discussion about getting rid of the dogs before we move, but Joey loves them so much, we don't know if we can do it.  When we get home from a car ride, I take Joey out of his seat and let him walk to the front door.  He immediately looks for Freedom in the front house window.  His face lights up whenever he sees the pets.  *sigh* 

Even though Joey is a boy's boy, he is still in touch with his feminine side.  One of his little friends left her doll out on the playground.  Joey found it and played with it for a little bit.  Michael freaked out when he saw this photo.  I told him to calm down, his son is still a "boy"!  When we were at our large playgroup the other day, Joey went right for the tool bench!  :)

Joey points at things he wants now.  He also will start to push on his diaper if it's wet and needs changed.  He really likes to imitate you.  He LOVES to go outside.  He recognizes family members on Skype!  :) 

Joey has made such leaps and bounds over this past year.  It is so amazing and I am so grateful and lucky that I have been able to witness almost every "first"!  Happy (belated) First Birthday, little man!   We love you more than you will ever know! 

I Heart Water and Oatmeal

Well, Joey is going full speed ahead and ready for his first birthday!  I think that he thinks that just because he is about to be one, he can get into all kinds of mischief.  Gone are the days when we both can just sit around.  You can't take your eyes off the boy for one second now! 

Things he has done this week:

1) Put remote control in dog water bowl.  Luckily, I caught it before it was good and soaked.  The remote still works...for now.

2)  Put baby monitor into dog water bowl.  Unfortunately, I was not quick enough on this one.  The monitor was soaked!  You could hear the water inside of the monitor!  That may have been the demise of that electronic device.

3)  Put his shoes in the dog water bowl and try to drink out of the shoes.  Are you noticing a trend here?  We are really cracking down on disciplining Joey when he plays in the dog water since we really can't move the bowl somewhere else. 

4)  Poured baby oatmeal all over the kitchen floor and played in it.  Since Joey is a drooling fool, the oatmeal stuck all over his body.  He went straight in to the bath (his third of the day!)!  What irks me about this mischief is that I was standing right above him doing dishes!  Awww, geez!

I know it's only gonna get worse, so I might as well invest in some good running shoes, right?  :) 

Pre-Birthday Celebrations!

Joey's 1st birthday is at the end of this week, but Joey started celebrating while we were still in North Carolina!  Both sets of families (Michael's side and my side) each held little birthday parties for Joey since they wouldn't be able to be with us for the real day.  I only have pics from my family's party since I was lazy and did not take any photos while in NC...well, except for the one where Joey is sitting in the little seat while I'm doing my bathroom business!  :)  I will post the pics from Michael's family's party once they send me the photos...ahem, that's a hint Nana and Papa Mike!  ;) 

My mom had made Joey and me our own cakes.  We ALL made it through this first year...alive!  It's been a long year, and it definitely calls for a huge celebration.  We actually titled Joey's birthday party "We've Made It Through the First Year!"  I mean, these babies don't know what's going on and they're not going to remember this party, so it really is for the parents! 

Joey really loved digging into both of his cakes!  I don't even know if we should make him a cake for his real birthday!  He also really enjoyed seeing all of his family and pre-gaming for the upcoming big day!

Joey has already received some birthday gifts!  One gift he received was a one-year portrait session with a local photographer from Aunt Becky and Kenny!  We do not have all of the pics from the session yet, but the photographer did put up a sneak peek on her website.  The photo shoot was fun, and Joey posed like a champ!  :) 

Record Maker

Last Saturday, Joey and I participated in the Great Cloth Diaper Change of 2011.  This event was meant to show how the use of cloth diapers can reduce the waste in the landfills.  We were trying to get into the Guiness Book of World Records!  As of  right now, 6277 butts across the world were changed at the right moment! 

 Joey after his diaper change!  :)  He was not very happy!

The room full of babes getting their booties changed for this amazing event.  If you want more info, here is the website...http://greatclothdiaperchange.com/.